MODIFICATION
A -- REQUEST FOR CONCEPT PAPERS TO ADDRESS THE CHALLENGE OF PROVIDING FULL-SERVICE LIVING CAPABILITY FOR SMALL EXPEDITIONARY FORCES WITH A SUITABLE FORM FACTOR AND DEPOMENT COMPLEXITY LEVEL
- Notice Date
- 11/18/2011
- Notice Type
- Modification/Amendment
- NAICS
- 541712
— Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)
- Contracting Office
- ACC-APG SCRT - Natick (SPS), ATTN: AMSRD-ACC-N, Natick Contracting Division (R and BaseOPS), Building 1, Kansas Street, Natick, MA 01760-5011
- ZIP Code
- 01760-5011
- Solicitation Number
- NATICK-BAA-11-13
- Response Due
- 12/13/2011
- Archive Date
- 2/11/2012
- Point of Contact
- Darlene Rideout, (508) 233-4125
- E-Mail Address
-
ACC-APG SCRT - Natick (SPS)
(darlene.rideout@us.army.mil)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This corrected Sources Sought is issued for the purpose of providing a response date which was omitted on the General Information and to include all information which appears to have been omitted when released in the fed biz opps announcment. The U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Natick Contracting Division in support of the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC), Natick, MA, is requesting concept papers from industry and academia to address the challenge of providing full-service living capability for small expeditionary forces with a suitable form factor and deployment complexity level. The Army seeks to overcome this problem through the development of a Self-sustaining Living Module (SLiM) capable of providing life support functions for approximately 20 Warfigthters. The SLiM is a research study that will explore the application and synergistic integration of emerging habitation technologies into a conceptual technology design and demonstration. The SLiM's overarching goal is to maximize Warfighter quality of life and energy efficiency while minimizing logistics footprint with a futuristic concept that can be scaled for next generation military contingency bases. This IS NOT a Request for Proposal. The Government intends on awarding a minimum of one contract under topic D, Tentage, Fabric Structures, and Rigid Wall Shelters / Shelters and Life Support Technologies for Contingency Basing of the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center (NSRDEC) Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) 11-13. BACKGROUND: Current Army base camp systems, especially those of smaller size (less than company level), are usually composed of a variety of standard and non-standard equipment. This results in inefficient power and water consumption, waste management, and construction while increasing operations and maintenance costs over time. Additionally, these inefficiencies divert critical Warfighter efforts from mission operations to the supporting the functions of establishing, operating and maintaining base camps. Personnel are often forced to improvise when establishing base camps and combat outposts in austere environments - typically with little/no organic resources, no construction material handling equipment, often under enemy threat, at the detriment to their mission availability and effectiveness. Army deployable shelters also require power and energy in order to meet the physical and operational needs of the Warfighter. The importance of having an unimpeded and renewable source of energy has become a crucial issue in the area of rapidly deployable shelter technologies. Power is currently supplied to fielded Army base camps through the use of heavy unit-driven generators and batteries. The characteristics of these power sources create high monetary and logistical costs. Their weight increases the burden to soldiers, causes greater fuel consumption and degrades the performance of Army transport vehicles. In addition, generators require the use of expensive fossil fuels. The Army's contingency basing science and technology initiative strives to research, integrate, develop and mature next generation technologies for fully integrated holistic contingency basing capabilities. Specific areas of concern include: mission-specific plug and play components, subsystems and modules designed for optimized manpower requirements, increased survivability, optimized habitation, reduced logistics footprint, enhanced supportability, and reduced cost. In support of the Army's contingency basing strategy, the S&T community seeks new, innovative approaches to address soldier sustainment and life support for future applications. DESIRED CAPABILITIES AND DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS: The Army is seeking unique, forward-thinking ideas in order to develop a Self-sustaining Living Module (SLiM) addressing and resolving the issues described above. The development of the SLiM will advance the current state-of-the-art of applicable, expeditionary, life support technology. The SLiM concept focuses on novel, integrated system designs intended for future use, therefore, a complete list of specific performance requirements have not been provided as this time. Ideally, the SLiM will have the following capabilities/characteristics: Provides shelter/billeting, hygiene (shower/latrine), limited food preparation, waste management or repurposing, and laundering for around 20 personnel Maintains habitable internal temperatures and living conditions Automatic set-up and breakdown - minimize manpower, no MHE necessary Interoperability with standard base camp utility structures Capable of self-sustainment - can operate "off the grid", when necessary, through energy generation and the incorporation of energy efficient technology, including but not limited to: insulation, solar shading, automatic power shut-down, phase change materials, etc. Expeditionary in nature (regardless of environmental conditions/water exposure) - compactable for shipment/transport, air-droppable or vehicle carried/towed, Life support capabilities - water harvesting, storage, purification and reuse Durability to operate in a variety of extreme environments and terrains Protection against enemy threats (bullets, RPGs, mortars) Protection against chemical and biological weapons Fire-proof, or at a minimum flame retardant In-field repairable - minimize the need for spare parts or special tools Integrated lighting and power distribution Upward Scalability (unit complexing) Sufficient ventilation and condensation mitigation Decontamination and cleansing capable Real-time diagnostic monitoring of critical life-support equipment As with all expeditionary Army systems, factors such as weight and cube should be considered and minimized. Additionally, Environment Protection Agency (EPA) regulations should be taken into consideration in the selection of materials and end of life disposal of the system. SUBMISSION PROCESS: All interested firms are encouraged to submit a Concept Paper to NSRDEC in accordance with NSRDEC Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) 11-13, which can be found at https://www3.natick.army.mil. The BAA contains instructions for submission of Concept Papers. Proprietary information will not be disclosed outside the U.S. Government. Nothing shall be construed herein or through the synopsis process to commit or obligate the Government to further action as a result of this synopsis. Firms responding to this synopsis shall bear all risk and expense of any resources used to provide the requested information, and all information submitted in response to this request shall become the property of the Government, and will not be returned to the submitter. Interested parties are invited to submit a concept paper under the topic referenced above and shall submit via email to elizabeth.swisher@us.army.mil by 31 Dec 2012. The Government shall evaluate all white papers and provide a written response/proposal invitation to the offerors on or about 31 Jan 2012. Any questions concerning this acquisition should be addressed to Elizabeth Swisher, NCD, via email to the address listed above. The Natick BAA is effective from 1 April 2011 through 31 March 2013. It is anticipated that cost plus fixed fee contract will be awarded. In accordance with FAR 16.301-3, for an anticipated cost type contract to be awarded, potential offerors must ensure that they have an adequate accounting system, as determined by their cognizant Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) office. This synopsis expires 31 Dec 2011. REFERENCES: Lagoon, A. S. (2011). US ARMY Research, Development and Engineering Command, Contingency Basing Science & Technology Project Plan. Unpublished Manuscript
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/notices/ddfcd591cb000bb53ff064be093ca704)
- Place of Performance
- Address: ACC-APG SCRT - Natick (SPS) ATTN: AMSRD-ACC-N, Natick Contracting Division (R and BaseOPS), Building 1, Kansas Street Natick MA
- Zip Code: 01760-5011
- Zip Code: 01760-5011
- Record
- SN02626024-W 20111120/111118234408-ddfcd591cb000bb53ff064be093ca704 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |